“Today is a historic day for our country and for our democracy,” Carolyn Maloney, chair of oversight, said in her opening statements before the vote. “Only for the second time in a generation will we vote on whether hundreds of thousands of American citizens will finally have a voice in Congress.”
“The United States is the only democratic country that denies voting rights in the national legislature and local self-government to the people of its capital. This is wrong. It violates everything we stand for as Americans,” he said. say the New York Democrat.
The committee’s vote to pass the bill paves the way for a vote in the House of Representatives on the measure, which is expected to take place next week.
Now Democrats are reclaiming the bill for consideration in the new Congress and pushing for its passage again. This time, Democrats control a narrow majority in the Senate, but the DC state bill will still face an upward struggle in the House where it is unlikely to get enough Republican support to clear a 60-year threshold. votes for the step. Delaware Sen. Tom Carper said Wednesday that his bill granting DC status now has the support of 45 senators, most of them in history.
HR 51 was introduced by Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton, a non-voting member of the DC House and a longtime advocate for the state.
“Congress can no longer exclude DC residents from the democratic process, forcing residents to watch from the sidelines as Congress votes on laws that affect the nation or even votes on duly elected DC government laws. democracy requires so much more, ”Norton said. in his initial comments.
“DC residents deserve full vote representation in the Senate and House and full control over their local affairs. They deserve to be statewide,” he said.
Democrats raised the issue of state granting in Washington, DC, as an important step toward equal representation and voting rights in the United States, while Republicans argued that the legislation represents a partisan effort. of Democrats to push for a progressive agenda and tip the scales in Congress. in his favor.
“Let’s be very clear about what HR 51 is all about. It’s about creating two new Democratic seats in the U.S. Senate,” said Republican Party Rep. James Comer of Kentucky, a member of the committee’s ranking.
“That’s what it’s about. We could end the discussion there. That’s what this bill is about and everyone knows it. This bill is part of the progressive path that the United States must reform President Biden, the leader Schumer and President Pelosi: that socialist utopia of which the Squads speak. “
Throughout the hearing, Democrats made it clear that they saw the state’s granting to DC as a matter of civil rights and representation, while Republicans claimed the nation’s capital was the 51st state through the legislation, instead of doing so through a constitutional amendment, defies the laws of the nation and pushed back on other logistical and political issues.
In his testimony, Bowser described as “bad faith” the cases filed against HR 51, including claims that it is unconstitutional or that Washington, DC, is too small or cannot be controlled.
“Arguing that Washingtonians should remain deprived of rights to protect the interests of the federal government is dangerous, obsolete, and downright insulting,” he said.
This story and title were updated Wednesday with additional news.
CNN’s Kristin Wilson, Alison Main and Alex Rogers contributed to this report.